Wild North America 1846

Chapter 548: Make a fortune

Author: Portuguese toothless

The next day, at the imperial meeting.

A group of courtiers, headed by Count Dongjie, the prime minister of the cabinet, expressed their disbelief that the French army had been defeated in consecutive battles.

The impression that the French Empire was powerful was so deep-rooted that no one could have imagined that it would be defeated so quickly and so miserably. It was simply unbelievable!

What's especially outrageous is that... French Emperor Napoleon III abandoned his army and fled, leaving the ministers speechless.

This matter involves the noble Emperor of France, and it is not appropriate for ministers to comment on it, even if it is a foreign monarch.

It’s taboo for His Majesty!

But the ministers all had a look of disdain on their faces. It can be seen that Napoleon III's reputation has completely collapsed. This must be the same in European countries, even in France, right?

The Franco-Prussian War lasted only a few days

The collapse of the French government of Emile Olivier made European and North American governments realize the extreme fragility of Napoleon III's rule and became even less optimistic about the future prospects.

After discussing international affairs for a while, mainly the Franco-Prussian War and surrounding international influences, which is the most popular gossip in the world today, the atmosphere in the Imperial Council gradually became heated.

Emperor Richard sat high on the throne and listened to the reports from the ministers of the cabinet. The unanimous opinion of all the ministers was:

In the future, France may undergo great changes. The foundation of the rule of the current French Emperor Napoleon III is shaky. The empire should make comprehensive plans for this.

Gai Wangshan, Minister of Commerce, even proposed;

It should be a good opportunity to take advantage of the Kingdom of Prussia's occupation of many French provinces to dump imperial products to France through the channels of the Prussian army.

during the war

The so-called French customs are all paralyzed, and domestic prices in France have skyrocketed. A barrel of kerosene that costs 8 Tang Yuan in China is now sold in France at as high as 35 Tang Yuan, which is still four times the export price.

As an old colonial country, France has a profound heritage and there are many wealthy people. Such a good opportunity cannot be missed.

Prime Minister Earl Dongjie stated;

Since the Chicago Agricultural Commodity Futures Exchange was put into operation, the number of large orders has been considerable, accounting for more than 60% of this year's summer grain harvest.

Affected by the Franco-Prussian War, the transaction price was 55% higher than in previous years, which played a very good role in stabilizing the market.

However, as the Franco-Prussian War situation took a turn for the worse, the grain reserves were suspended after selling off two batches. This was because buyers from Europe were worried that the war would end soon, so they had a strong wait-and-see mood.

Considering this negative factor, it is expected that the government's vacating plan will not be smooth sailing.

The War Readiness Reserve Grain Depot of the Tang Empire has been accumulated for more than 20 years and has a huge amount of reserves.

Especially in some grain depots that did not establish a regular rotation system in the early days, the grain has been stored for seven to eight years or even more than ten years, and the moldy condition of the old grain coming out of the warehouse is relatively serious.

The wheat stored in the grain depot is the main material, only wheat without flour.

This is because sun-dried wheat is suitable for long-term storage, but once ground into flour, it cannot be stored and must be eaten as soon as possible.

Over time, the flour will harden and deteriorate, and it can only be used to raise pigs.

There are also many problems with the aged wheat shipped out of the warehouse this time. People are unwilling to process it when it is transported to the flour mill, which is too troublesome and affects the reputation.

This is because if wheat is stored for too long, the grains will become loose and powdery, and the peeling process will be very troublesome. The flour extraction rate is low and the cost is high. The quality of the processed flour cannot be guaranteed, and the taste is much worse than that of fresh flour.

.

Originally, 1.25 to 1.3 pounds of wheat can produce one pound of flour, but aged wheat can produce one pound of flour as low as 1.4 pounds, and the flour is yellow and of poor quality.

We originally hoped to take advantage of the food panic caused by the Franco-Prussian War in Europe to realize the "vacation plan" of the strategic reserve, but now it seems that good things will be hard to come by!

Discussed for a while

Emperor Richard was sitting at the top, although his face showed no expression, but he was quite pleased in his heart;

These important ministers here all have a good international perspective and can consider issues from a higher strategic level, rather than just focusing on the one-third of an acre of land in front of them. This is especially valuable in today's era of relatively limited information!

Look around the world

Only the old colonial powers such as Britain, France and the Netherlands can cultivate politicians with a global vision. Now the Tang Empire has also made up for this lesson, which is of course worthy of joy.

Richard coughed lightly, and the hall immediately fell silent. All the ministers turned their gazes to His Majesty the Emperor, and stood respectfully with their hands lowered, waiting for the holy instructions.

pause slightly

Emperor Richard said in an unhurried voice;

“Everyone loves you;

I am aware of what was previously discussed.

Regarding the issue of France opening its doors and suspending customs during the war, the Ministry of Commerce can communicate with the Kingdom of Prussia through private channels to establish a secure port for receiving materials and settling bank matters. Specific issues can be dealt with on its own.

But be careful;

Relevant smuggling trade should not be carried out in an official capacity, but can be led by some chambers of commerce and operated in the name of individual traders or several chambers of commerce to avoid unnecessary international disputes in the future."

Emperor Richard thought more carefully. Although the Ministry of Commerce was in the name of expanding channels for export companies, entering other countries' markets without going through customs was smuggling. No matter how you explain it, it was smuggling.

The official government has nothing to do with this matter, so it would be more appropriate to use the name of a private chamber of commerce.

It’s not like the French Empire just fell and failed to recover. This kind of bad thing will definitely be blamed in the future. When it comes to the government level, it’s just nonsense.

To be honest, if we follow the attitude of the traditional Chinese official government, we will never allow such a violation of rules.

But in today's international environment, it doesn't seem out of the ordinary.

The great powers led by the United Kingdom established the law of the jungle, in which the weak and the strong prey on the strong. Taking advantage of the situation is the only reasonable choice. If you have the opportunity to let others go, they will only call you stupid instead of praising you for obeying the rules.

Even though Emperor Richard was as rich as anyone in the country, he was jealous of the huge wealth that France had accumulated over the past hundreds of years, and he couldn't help but take advantage of it.

Who would do it if there is no profit and the burden of notoriety?

This time, the Kingdom of Prussia smuggled goods on a large scale, and the upper-class nobles of the empire, including the royal family, benefited from the profits. The Kingdom of Prussia could use this to make up for part of its military expenditures. Both parties benefited, and only France suffered.

Due to the long-standing high tariff barriers, the French market was the dream lover that the Tang Empire longed for but could not get. It was really scratching one's head and scratching one's head outside the courtyard wall, and the whole body was burned!

France is like an aristocratic lady raised in a boudoir. All the food and clothing are of the first-class quality. The furnishings in the house are luxurious, and a pile of francs can be bought from every corner of the house.

Can you imagine how tempting this was for the Tang Empire, which was founded on trade?

It is a pity that France's high tariff barriers have always existed. A high entry tax of 135% was levied on the kerosene imported from the Tang Empire. In addition, there was a profit tax and a mess of surcharges. The total tax was as high as 200%, which made the oil companies gnash their teeth.

even so

France is also the second largest market in Europe after the United Kingdom, consuming more than 5.5 million barrels of kerosene every year. This shows that the French aristocracy and middle class are wealthy, and that is really no joke.

Is it a big deal for a noble family to use 10 to 8 barrels of kerosene a year?

Is it okay for a wealthy middle-class French family to use one or two barrels of kerosene a year?

Nothing else to say

As a world-renowned loan sharking empire, the French rentier class has as many as 2.2 million people. Over the past few hundred years, France has achieved fruitful results in colonizing the world, and has accumulated the largest middle class in Europe. Its current consumption power is astonishing.

Oil companies with royal and aristocratic backgrounds smuggled goods into France on a large scale, and the huge profits they made were naturally reflected in dividends. Who wouldn't want to take a bite of this big piece of meat?

Other good things, such as grain and oil products, tobacco, toffee, cheese and chocolate, wine, meat and canned fruits, etc., can be taken advantage of to swarm into the French market and make huge profits.

His Majesty the Emperor's statement made the eyes of the ministers present brighten up. They all turned their approving glances to the Minister of Commerce, Earl Gaiwangshan, and their hearts became hot. They were all thinking about which of the family's properties should be included in the smuggling list.

Earl Gaiwangshan stood up from the train respectfully, saluted with both hands and replied, "I obey the decree and will handle this matter safely, and I dare not betray the great trust of the Holy One."

Emperor Richard nodded slightly, turned his gaze to the Prime Minister Count Dong Jie, and continued;

"Dong Aiqing, the plan to reserve grain and open up the warehouse is not a day's work. This matter cannot be rushed.

If such a large-scale grain reserve is thrown into the European market, just the news is enough to crush the entire market. Therefore, we have to be cautious and take a long-term approach.

Come as I wish;

A country like France is in turmoil. How can it be calmed down in a short while?

Even as the ministers thought, the Franco-Prussian War ended with the victory of the Kingdom of Prussia.

However, the huge social turmoil and the rebalancing of European power caused by this are far from ending in a year or two, and will definitely last for a long time.

Taking into account various factors such as post-war arrangements, defeat compensation and the garrison of the Kingdom of Prussia, as well as the internal political turmoil in the Kingdom of France, it is a foregone conclusion that this major European grain-producing country will experience a significant reduction in grain production for at least the next 3 to 4 years.

This situation will inevitably exacerbate the risk of food shortages in Europe, and may even lead to famine in some areas.

In this fundamental situation

The final completion of the "vacation plan" is just a matter of a few months earlier or a few months later, and it will not affect the final implementation of the plan.

By emptying the storage capacity, the imperial government will be able to purchase and store the domestic harvest for a long time to come, stabilize prices from large fluctuations, and create a better environment for overall economic development.

Based on current situation

It can be determined that in the next 5 to 8 years, the world grain market will always maintain a high level of operation, which is conducive to the establishment of an empire's grain procurement and storage and a three to five-year scientific rotation mechanism. Generally speaking, it is good news."

the implication;

What should we fear if the quality of our grain reserves is poor?

When Europe was short of food, wouldn't black bread mixed with sawdust and wild vegetables still be eaten?

His Majesty the Emperor's words were like breaking the clouds and revealing the sun. The ministers in the cabinet nodded frequently, stood up in unison, raised their hands and saluted, saying: "My emperor is a saint, he lives in a temple and can see thousands of miles away. I can only admire him!"

"My dear friends, please forgive me and live in peace!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty, long live my emperor, long live your Majesty!"